A look back at summer 2016 // From the Phone

Here we are on our last official day of summer before school starts, and it's hard to believe that these three months have come and gone so quickly once again. I'm ready. I'm ready for pumpkins on steps and seasonal drinks from Starbucks, for gray leggings and Sunday afternoons spent with friends and family watching football games, for leaf pictures and pumpkin patches and Thursday night football games under the lights with Jaden and his teammates, for setting up our tailgating spread in our prized parking space west of the UNI-Dome, for open windows and soups in the crock pot, backpacks filled with book orders from school and new Fall shows on our DVR line-up. And of course, more than ready to board that airplane to go see Mickey and one pretty magical castle.

But before we officially move forward, one big look back. I got a new phone at the start of summer - a new phone with extra storage space and more room for pictures and videos. I love my DSLR but these phone pics make me pretty happy, too. And - it can fit in my back pocket! ;)

So without further adieu, just some of my favorite little squares that tell the story of our summer months...

All the way back to selfies that celebrated the first week of June...

Our weekends on Lake Ponderosa - with kids and without!

The ice cream truck frequented our street...

So many days and nights at the Falls. I love all the summer colors displayed at the swimming pool...

Daycare teachers that go above and beyond with our kids...

If we had a free Friday or Saturday night and the weather was our idea of perfection, you could most likely find us on our Main Street. Toads, Scratch, Ginger Thai, Noble Oak and a walk by the river...

Family reunions and 80th birthday parties...

Pictures sent from daycare in the middle of the day...

A little boy who learned to let his Mommy and Daddy sleep in and find his own breakfasts...

So. much. baseball. The Angels and the Orioles. New friendships. Our home away from home.

Basketball and football camps...

Summer nights under blue skies and a setting sun. Mini-golf and go-kart rides. Ice cream for dinner and lightning bug catching. Gravel roads and open windows and favorite songs on the radio. Game nights on the deck and impromptu gatherings with neighbors. My favorite things of summer.

Summer traditions like strawberry picking and carnival rides...

My happy place. The water.

One epic 4th of July weekend. The best.

An early morning date with my little guy. A 5:30am wakeup call on our assigned morning to make our Disney Fast Pass Reservations and an excited six-year old that got up before the sun to join me in the excitement.

A trip to the northeast during the DNC. My first subway ride, my first Amtrak ride and a stroll through the streets of Albert Einstein's old hood. It was interesting to experience new things and I was pretty proud of my increased independence, but boy, I have never been so happy to see Iowa again.

Neighbors who bring goodies. Every summer without fail.

A picnic night with our daycare families and teachers with many hidden talents.

Explorations and new adventures. Just the four of us.

Nights with friends. So many bonfires, so many bottles of wine, so many late nights, so many sticky s'more fingers. And a few Sunday mornings where we couldn't quite get up in time for church because of it all. ;)

He's going to kill me for sharing this. ;)

Awkward sleeping positions and extreme bed head and so much exhaustion from so much fun...

We're ready for you, Fall!